Album Review | One Direction | Made In The A.M.

The highly anticipated fifth studio album from One Direction, Made In The A.M., has made its mark in the airwaves and the charts everywhere since its release on Friday, 13th November. With the announcement of their hiatus for 2016, it is evident that Made In The A.M. is One Direction’s gift to their loyal fans all around the globe before their well-earned break. Their fifth album is jam-packed with promises of their return as well as their gentle plea to have a moment to take a breather from touring and recording.

Hey Angel opens the album with a heavenly array of electric keys and a melodic chorus of, “Oooh, Oooh, Oooh”. It’s catchy from start to finish, leaving you ready for their first single, Drag Me Down. It only seems fitting that the next track talks about not being dragged down since the album starts all the way “up in the sky”. One Direction’s first single from this album carries the same devil-may-care attitude that rang throughout their third album, Midnight Memories. Their second single on the other hand, Perfect, sees their playful side come out a little more in this fifth album. Rumoured to be about T-Swizzle, this song shows a little bite as H-dog decides to return the lyrical favour and stand by the fact the sometimes the reckless guy is what every girl needs when curiosity hits. 

Infinity changes things up a bit as the boys try to tackle with the heartache of cheating and still loving the person who’s done them wrong. It’s a powerful song that oozes with the emotion behind the lyrics. End of the Day takes another turn as the track turns up the playfulness in both the accompaniment and the melody. The lyrics are sweet and will get you dancing and head-banging for sure! If I Could Fly reals in the playfulness and really pulls the heartstrings as the accompaniment is stripped back completely. The lyrics are beautiful and the vocals are top notch! It’s definitely one of my favourites. Long Way Down slowly builds things up again, but retains the laid-back nature of the previous track. It unites the heavenly sounds of Hey Angel and the lyrical prowess of If I Could Fly and Infinity.

Never Enough is another one of my favourites as it ignites the inner child in me. It reminds me of The Lion King’s, “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” and has me singing at the top of my lungs whenever it plays. Olivia continues this playfulness as it integrates lyrics from the classic 1971 film, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory to it’s over-the-top carefree sound. It is also “unfinished”, according to Harry, so we may see it as a comeback single in 2017. What A Feeling carries and enigmatic feel that reminds me of, C’mon, C’mon from, Take Me Home. A bit more of a dance–vibe, this track has you singing along as you sway along to the accompaniment.

Although Love You Goodbye is my favourite track on the album, I can’t help but think that the verses are too close to Timbaland’s, Apologize. Regardless of the similarities, I think the lyrics are well written and carry the most emotion in this album. 

I Want To Write You A Song is a beautiful stripped-back track that returns to the playful nature of tracks eight and nine. I love the guitar riff and the lyrics are again well weaved together to build a beautiful love song. History closes the album with their promise to return from their break. It sounds like Randy Newman’s classic, You’ve Got A Friend In Me, from Disney’s, Toy Story – and why not? It’s been a great five years and the boys are not saying “goodbye”, they’re saying, “see you in a bit”.

Deluxe Tracks

Temporary Fix – Catchy and well written, but not my cup of tea message wise. It sounds like an eighties classic that’s survived through the ages. Think, Rock Me and Midnight Memories mixed together with a bit of a nineties alternative vibe.

Walking In The Wind – Another one of my favourites! Simple, catchy and one that will get you moving from start to finish. It’s another great example of their growing writing abilities.

Wolves – Carries the same playfulness already embedded in this album as they talk about defending their girl’s honour. It’s simple and has you grooving and singing along.

A.M. – This title track is one of the best I’ve heard from One Direction. All hands on deck lyrically, it’s a great place to close the deluxe version as it tells their story from the very beginning. Whether they’re five or Four; touring or recording, they were Up All Night in order for fans to Take [Them] Home. All their Midnight Memories were Made In The A.M.

Star Rating: ★★★★★
Next on sL: The Hunger Games : Mockingjay Part II

New Album | One Direction | Midnight Memories (Deluxe Edition)

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* For full album review go to: Love Music; Love Life *

Why Don’t We Go There resonates with Neon Trees’, Everybody Talks both in the melody and the accompaniment. Lyrically it talks about pursuing a girl and making sure that no minute is wasted on not telling this girl how they feel (and more). It’s up beat, fun and embedded with the thrill of the chase.

Does He Know is a cheeky version of Rick Springfield’s, Jesse’s Girl. Much like the theme of C’mon, C’mon of watching a girl dance and being hypnotised by the way she moves, this song talks about noticing a girl from far away – a girl comfortable in who she is, but seems to hide that confidence from her boyfriend. It’s another throwback song that leaves you singing and dancing along.

Alive brings back the electric guitar and attitude. Singing about a relationship that’s carefree, where it’s about doing things that make you feel alive. It’s really a rougher version of Live While We’re Young basically – it belts out, “YOLO!”

Half A Heart is an acoustic-based heartbreak song, where the lyrics are beautiful and simple as it talks about being incomplete. It’s a song that attempts to mend a broken relationship. I have to say this is my favourite track out of the four bonus tracks on the Deluxe edition.

sL Star Rating: ★★★★★

Next on sL:

FILM REVIEW | One Direction: This Is Us

This Is Us Review

Following in suit with the Jonas Brothers, Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus), Michael Jackson and Justin Bieber, One Direction have released their own 3D “doco-con” (documentary concert) for their fans to enjoy.

Taking a few crowd favourites from both Up All Night and Take Me Home, along with their Comic Relief single, One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks), the concert aspect of the film begs you to sing along – had I been in the back row of the theatre, I would have actually been dancing. On the documentary side of things, I thought it lacked novelty in the sense that much of it was a combination of their BBC documentary, One Direction: A Year in the Making, and their multiple biographies that have just been released.

But let’s unpack it a little more…

Airtime: Who Do You See A Lot Of???

You do see a lot of the boys, but if you’re curious as to how much time for each, I think I’d have to agree with my sister who said that ‘Harry got a lot of airtime’. I mean don’t get me wrong, Harry got a lot of great serious airtime too, but they were just overshadowed by his shirtless scenes. Seriously, any excuse to have him shirtless or looking at the camera, it was in there. Louis dominated the contemplative talking time. I felt like he had a lot of the mature things to say in regards to their journey as a band. Liam was following the same train of thought, but at a more personal level. Zayn had a lot of family airtime, which I thought was sweet and so realistic to what a lot of children who grow up in working class families want to do for their family. Niall was just plain Niall, laughing, having a bit of fun and was just thankful to the fans. So I guess there’s a enough in there for everyone to enjoy.

1D in 3D

I’m sorry but I’m still not convinced that people need to be in 3D. I mean it was great with the concert scenes. But even in those scenes, because there weren’t too many 3D graphics in the songs themselves (and the boys didn’t actually pop-out at you), there was no need to spend $20 for 3D.

Concert Concept

I love the set concept (because I’m a theatre nerd). I also loved that it was a mixture of London and all the places in the world, along with the comic book and gaming theme. It captures One Direction as a group and as individuals.

Favourite Part: When Mr Payne (Liam’s dad) says, “You never see it from the dad’s perspective…I miss him.”

Overall it was a good film. Nothing new, both in the genre of doc-cons or One Direction – but, it is one that fans will enjoy.

Star Rating: ★★★

Next on sL: Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters